Day 11: On to Brussels, Belgium

Our suitcases had to be outside our stateroom by 7:45 a.m., and we left the ship at 8:30 with Brian and Mary Beth for the drive to Brussels, Belgium.

Our brief view of Amsterdam

Kevin was our guide for the transfer. His job was essentially to ride with us in the Mercedes from Amsterdam to Brussels, then catch a train home. Originally from London, he now lives in the Netherlands. We talked about the recent heat wave, and he explained that Dutch apartments are designed to keep people warm, not cool. During the hottest stretch of the summer, his apartment reached 32°C (about 90°F) inside.

We made a quick rest stop in Oosterheide

The drive was smooth, with surprisingly little traffic. At one point, police were preventing additional vehicles from entering the highway we were traveling on. We never did learn why. As soon as we crossed into Belgium, however, the condition of the roads noticeably declined. Both Kevin and our driver laughed and said that was simply the difference between the two governments.

We arrived in Brussels just before noon, and our hotel, the Steigenberger Icon Wiltcher's, already had our rooms ready. While it wasn't quite as luxurious as our hotel in Lucerne, it was very nice and in a perfect location on Avenue Louise, surrounded by upscale shops and boutiques.

Sylvie, our guide, met us at 1:00 for a quick neighborhood orientation before leaving to meet another tour group arriving from Paris after a Normandy river cruise. She pointed out a few nearby places to eat, so Bill and I used Google Translate to select which sandwiches we wanted from a neighborhood shop, then headed back to the room to relax before our afternoon excursion.

Discovering Brussels

The forecast threatened rain, but fortunately our local guide more than made up for the gloomy weather with an abundance of enthusiasm.

One of the first things we learned was that Belgium is a multilingual country. Most people speak either Flemish (a form of Dutch) or French. Northern Belgium borders the Netherlands and is primarily Flemish-speaking, while southern Belgium borders France and speaks French. Brussels itself is officially bilingual but is predominantly French-speaking. There is also a small German-speaking community in eastern Belgium.

Our guide shared a few famous Belgians, including Karl Marx, who lived in Brussels for a time, and Audrey Hepburn, who was born there in 1929.

Belgium became an independent nation in 1830, with Leopold I becoming its first king the following year. Today, Belgium is both a constitutional monarchy and a parliamentary democracy.

Leopold I's son, Leopold II, succeeded him in 1865 and remains one of Belgium's most controversial historical figures. He commissioned many of Brussels' grand public buildings, but he is equally infamous for his brutal rule over the Congo Free State, which he controlled as his personal possession from 1885 to 1908. Millions of Congolese died during his rule through forced labor, disease, and horrific punishments for failing to meet rubber production quotas.

After Leopold II died without a legitimate heir, his nephew Albert I became king. Known as the "Soldier King," he fought alongside his troops during World War I while his wife, Queen Elisabeth, served as a nurse.

Belgium's current monarch is King Philippe. His heir is Princess Elisabeth, who recently earned a master's degree in public policy from Harvard. When she eventually succeeds her father, she will become Belgium's first queen regnant.

Around the Royal Quarter

Our tour began with a bus ride into the city center. Brussels' streets are incredibly narrow, and it was amazing—and slightly terrifying—how closely our driver squeezed past pedestrians, parked cars, and other buses.

We drove past the massive Palace of Justice, another of Leopold II's ambitious building projects, before walking through the Royal Quarter.

The Palace of Justice. We saw no superheroes.

The Place Royal with a statue of Godfrey of Bouillon in front of the Church of Saint James of Coudenberg

The Royal Palace serves as the king's official workplace rather than his residence. Our guide pointed out that the flags were flying, indicating that the king was in Belgium and carrying out his official duties. Across the street is a beautiful park that once served as the royal family's hunting grounds.

The Royal Palace of Brussels

"Le Printemps" (Spring) at the park across from the Royal Palace

Nearby are the remains of the Palace of Coudenberg, which served as the residence of Belgium's rulers for nearly 700 years. The palace was destroyed in an accidental fire on February 3, 1731—possibly because someone left a candle burning. Unfortunately, the surrounding moat had frozen solid, leaving firefighters without an easy source of water. Today, the underground ruins can be explored as part of a museum.

The ruins of the Palace of Coudenberg are underground in this museum

We also passed St. James' Church (Sint Jacob in Dutch), dedicated to the Apostle James, and the impressive equestrian statue of Godfrey of Bouillon, one of the leaders of the First Crusade who helped capture Jerusalem in 1099.

Another view of Saint James' Church

Our walk continued through Mont des Arts, where we saw the René Magritte Museum. Magritte is perhaps best known for The Son of Man, the painting of a man in a bowler hat whose face is hidden behind a green apple.

The Magritte Museum has a Green Apple on top

Musical Instruments Museum

Nearby stands the Carillon of Mont des Arts, a large clock built for the 1958 World's Fair. Every hour, its twenty-four bells alternate between French and Flemish melodies while twelve moving figures celebrate important people and moments from Belgian history, from Celtic ancestors and medieval rulers to artists, soldiers, musicians, and workers.

The Mont des Arts in Brussels

Carillon du Mont des Arts, the famous clock with 12 figures representing Belgian history and culture

Waffles, Chocolate, and Rain

No visit to Brussels would be complete without talking about waffles.

Our guide explained that Belgians don't actually call them "Belgian waffles." There are many regional varieties, with the two best known being the Brussels waffle and the Liège waffle. We sampled the Liège version, which is richer, denser, and a little less fluffy than the Brussels style. Locals usually enjoy them in the afternoon with coffee or tea and nothing more than a dusting of powdered sugar, although tourists can find every imaginable topping.

Sylvie hands Bill a waffle

So many waffle types and so many toppings!

They were delicious!

Belgium is equally proud of its chocolate.

Jean Neuhaus, a Swiss pharmacist who moved to Brussels in 1857, first became famous for coating medicine with chocolate to make it more appealing to patients. His grandson later transformed that idea into the Belgian praline by surrounding a creamy ganache filling with a chocolate shell.

Galeries Royales Saint-Hubert, one of the oldest covered shopping arcades in Europe, and a great place to get out of the rain

Jean Neuhaus himself, crafted from chocolate

We also learned about Mary Delluc, who founded Mary Chocolatier in 1919. Because women were not allowed to become certified chocolatiers at the time, she cleverly opened a café and gave away samples of her chocolates. They became so popular that the rules were eventually changed, allowing her to sell them professionally. She later earned the prestigious title of Royal Chocolatier.

Mary Chocolatier's shop, the first female Chocolatier in Belgium

Throughout the afternoon, the rain came and went, and much of our walking tour involved darting into doorways and sheltered plazas while waiting for the showers to pass. We had packed raincoats, so we were fine, but several people in our group had not, making shelter a frequent stop along the way.

Like the other Belgian cities we visited, Brussels has a magnificent central market square lined with ornate guild houses representing different trades. The Gothic City Hall, built in the 1400s, survived both the French bombardment of 1695 and later served as a field hospital during World War I.

The Brussels Town Hall

Grand Place and its beautiful guildhalls - this stretch includes the hall of Haberdashers, Archers, Cabinet makers and Coopers, Carpenters, and Bakers, all built in the 1600's. 

The former Bread House, which is now a museum

A closer view of the guild house for Carpenters and Coopers, with all gold leaf trim

The House of the Belgian Brewers, which is now the Belgian Brewing Museum 

The Swan House once housed the guild of butchers, but also served as a meeting place for Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels

Our guide reminded us that French fries may actually deserve to be called Belgian fries. They are served almost everywhere, often with mayonnaise instead of ketchup. Our guide suggested that when the fried potatoes were introduced in the United States, because the proprietor spoke French, customers did not realize he was actually Belgian. 

A French (Belgian?) Fries museum in Brussels

Of course, we also sampled some chocolate. At Elizabeth Chocolatier, we tasted both pralines and truffles, and neither disappointed.

Elisabeth Chocolatier served us pralines and truffles, both were delicious

A chance to shop, eat, and get out of the rain

Bill also found some Belgian Roast coffee

One of Brussels' most famous attractions is the tiny statue of Manneken Pis, a little boy happily relieving himself into a fountain. Visitors can petition to have him dressed in costumes for non-political celebrations, although he was wearing his birthday suit when we visited. When I called Mom after we got home, one of the first things she asked was, "Did you see that statue of the little boy peeing? Your dad always thought that was hilarious."

Live and in person (sort of) - Manneken Pis

Despite the rainy weather—and despite my occasional concern that our bus driver was about to sideswipe another bus or a pedestrian—we had a wonderful afternoon exploring Brussels.

The bus safely returned us to the hotel, and that evening Bill picked up burgers from Huggy's Bruxelles 2. They were good, but they still couldn't compete with the burgers we have back home.

Our Belgian Burgers from Huggy's